Botis: Goetia Spirit 17, Rank, Seal and History

How to read the labels Historical what the old sources say. Later tradition what later writers added. Modern modern practice and my own notes.

Spirit facts
Number	17 of 72
Rank	President and Earl
Legions	60
Office (1904)	Tells all things past and to come.
Other spellings	Otis (Weyer, Scot)

Spirit 17 of the Ars Goetia is Botis. The 1904 edition by S. L. MacGregor Mathers and Aleister Crowley calls him a president and earl ruling 60 legions, and the first office it gives him is this: Botis tells all things past and to come.

He is one of the spirits whose image is frightening but whose offices, in the text, are mild. Each part below carries a label for its layer, explained in how to read a spirit page.

At a glance

Fact	In the entry
Number	17 of 72, in the 1904 order.
Name and spellings	Botis in 1904; other spellings: Otis (Weyer, Scot).
Rank and legions	President and Earl, 60 legions.
Metal of his rank (Observations)	Mercury (as president) or copper and silver (as earl); two ranks.
Hours for presidents (Observations)	“At any time, excepting Twilight, at Night, unless the King whom they are under be Invocated.”
Hours for earls (Observations)	“Any hour of the Day, so it be in Woods, or in any other places whither men resort not, or where no noise is.”
In Weyer’s catalog (1577)	Yes, as the source comparison below shows.

The 1904 entry

Historical The full entry from the 1904 edition, with footnote numbers and the dash after the heading left out and the heading set in ordinary type:

Botis. The Seventeenth Spirit is Botis, a Great President, and an Earl. He appeareth at the first show in the form of an ugly Viper, then at the command of the Magician he putteth on a Human shape with Great Teeth, and two Horns, carrying a bright and sharp Sword in his hand. He telleth all things Past, and to Come, and reconcileth Friends and Foes. He ruleth over 60 Legions of Spirits, and this is his Seal, etc.

Botis first appears as “an ugly Viper” and then, on command, as a man with great teeth and two horns, holding “a bright and sharp Sword”. His offices are divination, telling “all things Past, and to Come”, and reconciling friends and foes. Unlike his neighbours in the list, he has no office of teaching, harm or love.

Appearance

Historical Botis “appeareth at the first show in the form of an ugly Viper,” then at command puts on human shape “with Great Teeth, and two Horns, carrying a bright and sharp Sword in his hand.”

Offices in the Ars Goetia

Historical The offices of Botis, in the order the 1904 text gives them:

Tells all things past and to come.
Reconciles friends and foes.

Source comparison: Weyer and Scot

Historical Scot’s Weyer gives “Botis, otherwise Otis, a great president and an earle,” an “ouglie viper” who in human shape shows great teeth and two horns, with a sharp sword. He answers “of things present, past, and to come,” reconciles friends and foes, and rules 60 legions. There are no significant differences.

Historical Weyer calls him “Botis, alibi Otis” and “viperae specie deterrima”, in the most terrible form of a viper; Scot made this “ouglie”. The Latin answers concern things present, past, future “et abstrusis”, hidden matters, a fourth category the Goetia drops. The “bright” sword is the Goetia’s own addition. (About Weyer and Scot.)

Name and etymology

Historical The alternative name Otis suggests that the initial B was unstable in the manuscripts. No meaning is known.

Seal and images

Historical The seal above is Botis’s as printed in 1904, and by the rules of the Observations it would be made in mercury or copper and silver, the metals of his two ranks. Mercury is toxic, so a modern copy belongs on paper. Why seals were worn, why editions draw them differently and how to study one are explained in seals, circle and triangle.

Later tradition and modern practice

Modern Botis’s horned human form, with sword and great teeth, is a common image in modern art of the Goetia. Some modern practitioners approach Botis for reconciliation and peacemaking.

Lore about Botis’s personality, likes or chosen people is modern, not grimoire material; modern approaches explains where such claims come from.

Beginner’s quick reference

Item	What the sources say
Rank metal and hours (Goetia)	As president: mercury (toxic; never handle it); any time except twilight or night, unless his king is invoked (the wording is unclear). As earl: copper and silver; any hour of the day, in woods or other quiet places. The text does not say which rule applies.
Planet (later tradition: Golden Dawn and Crowley’s 777)	Mars and Mercury, one planet for each rank. For earls, 777 gives Mars, following the 1904 editor’s note, rather than the Venus and Moon of their copper and silver.
Decan and day or night spirit (later tradition: 777)	Virgo, second decan (10 to 20 degrees); day spirit. 777 decan incense: “Srorus” (unidentified). Tarot card of the decan: Nine of Pentacles.
Commonly reported color, incense, and plant (modern UPG; sources copy each other)	Color orange (sometimes with red); incense storax; plant lily (reported in some sources; toxic to cats, not recommended in a home with cats).
Associated symbols	Goetia image: an ugly viper; later a man with great teeth, two horns, and a bright sword. 777 Magical Image: the same image. Modern Demonolatry/UPG: the seal, used as an altar image.
Associated offerings	Modern practice, not in the Goetia manuscripts: most often listed, storax and dragon’s blood resin; one source adds frankincense and non-material gifts such as watching a horror film or a training session.

Before you burn or handle anything listed for Botis, read incense, plants and offerings.

Practical notes

Botis holds two ranks, president and earl, neither a king. His offices are divination and reconciliation, with no harm. Because he has no teaching office, he does not meet the beginner criteria, even though nothing in his entry is harmful. A question about your own role in a conflict, not about changing another person, would be the appropriate framing. Reconciliation with real people happens in real conversation.

In the directory, Botis is not among the 30 spirits that fit the beginner criteria.

Try this: one question to study

List what Botis does in the 1904 text and note that none of it is teaching; then reread the beginner criteria with him in mind.

What next

To compare Botis with other spirits of his rank, read Buer and Glasya-Labolas.

Later tradition In the Golden Dawn scheme of the decans, Botis is the day spirit of the second decan of Virgo, which belongs to the Nine of Pentacles; the night spirit of the same decan is Camio (spirit 53).

Common questions

Is Botis a good spirit for beginners?

Not as a first choice. He has no teaching office, so he does not meet all three beginner criteria I use: not a king, at least one teaching office, and no central harm, deception or compulsion. Nothing in his entry is harmful, and it is still worth reading as history.

What does Botis do in the Ars Goetia?

The 1904 text calls him a president and earl ruling 60 legions. Its first office for him is this: Botis tells all things past and to come. The entry lists 2 offices in all.

Does looking at Botis's seal call him?

No. Reading a name or looking at a seal does not call a spirit. The seal is a drawing from a 1904 book, and even the grimoire itself required long rituals for its own purposes.